


Can't dare to dream about you anymore

by apolloxbvcky



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Bilingual Lance (Voltron), Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Cuban Lance (Voltron), Fix-It of Sorts, Gay Keith (Voltron), Half-Galra Keith (Voltron), Hurt Lance (Voltron), M/M, Oblivious Lance (Voltron), Original Female Character(s) - Freeform, POV Lance (Voltron), Post Season 8, Sharing a Bed, but again, but he's oblivious, he's oblivious, pining lance, they/them pronouns for Pidge
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-19
Updated: 2021-03-19
Packaged: 2021-03-28 18:07:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,806
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30143484
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/apolloxbvcky/pseuds/apolloxbvcky
Summary: It's been two years since the Paladins saved reality itself, and they meet up to recall all their adventures, catch up on their current lives, and honor their gone friends.Lance didn't think this year would be different. Lance was very wrong, for Pidge had a piece of new information that would change their lives 180º degrees, once again.
Relationships: Keith/Lance (Voltron), Past Allura/Lance
Kudos: 23





	Can't dare to dream about you anymore

It’s Allura Day.

Or well, officially, it’s something in Altean he can’t even pronounce, no matter how hard Coran and Pidge try to teach him. 

But to the six of them, it’s Allura Day, which is why he’s in New Altea, after hopping on a ship with Pidge two days prior, and why he’s sitting in a table in the new palace, surrounded by the paladins and Coran for the first time in a year.

Last year, on the first Allura Day, the lions had left. He had been incredibly confused about it. Coran had said they left because they didn’t need them anymore, the universe didn’t need Voltron anymore, so they were free now. Lance never thought Blue, or Red, or any of them hadn’t felt free. 

And he mourned the loss of Blue, out of them all, with a heavy heart. Not only because they had had a deep connection, her being his first lion and all that, but because she was his last connection with Allura, the last reminder that they had had a deeper connection, too. 

He looks around the table, towards his friend. Everything has changed a lot during the last year. 

Coran, sitting on his right, looks almost the same, except for the lack of sparkle on his eyes, that disappeared the moment Allura did. Lance, sometimes, felt guilty for missing Allura so much, when Coran obviously had it worse. She had been the only tie to their old life, their old planet. He was the only Altean from the original planet left. Lance was sure Coran felt terribly alone, but still, he never tried to show. He always welcomed them with a smile, talking fast about all the things that he had improved in the last year, all the things he’s doing to make sure this New Altea is exactly the same as his home planet. He knows it’ll never be, but he’s trying. 

Shiro, on the other side of Coran, seems happier than Lance has ever seen him. He got married last year, and it seems like the post-wedding glow is lasting. The silver band on his left hand, matching his arm and hair, glisten under the lights of his castle. He has the biggest smile on his lips, and even laughs at all the jokes Lance makes. He looks so relaxed, so unlike the first time they became a team… Curtis makes him happy, it’s obvious, and Lance is glad for it. After everything Shiro’s been through, he needed to settle down. The world owed him that. He’s heard that he works at the Garrison now, but only as a consultant, and the rest of the time, he stays at home. Pidge told him on the way here, Curtis and him are trying to adopt, and that they’re making Keith the godfather, and Lance can’t help but smile at the thought of Keith being an uncle. 

Next to Shiro, right across from him, is his best friend. Hunk. They’ve known each other for so long, it’s weird to even think they barely see each other now. He’s been traveling the universe with Romelle and the rest of his cooking crew, and last time they spoke, he told him Shay had joined him. He introduced her to his family not so long ago, and apparently, his parents loved her, and his sister and her have become friends. They went  _ shopping _ together. It’s been a couple years since they started dating, and even though they’re still pretty young, Lance wouldn’t be surprised if Hunk popped The Question soon. 

Then Pidge… Pidge, well. They’re the one who changed the most. They were fifteen when this whole madness started, so now that they’re 18, they look less like a child, and more like the scientific genius they are. They graduated early - really, really early, and now have a position at the Garrison along with their father and brother, and apparently, they’re on the short way to the Nobel Prize in Physics. Lance is really proud of them. 

And finally… Keith. Lance doesn’t know where to start with Keith. He is 23 now. 23, and Lance can’t grip his mind around it. He looks so… adult. He has longer hair, so long that it reaches his shoulders now, usually on a ponytail, along with the small braid that falls down his shoulder. He’s bigger too, more muscular, filling his shirts in a way he didn’t before. He’s been working with the Blades since their adventures with Voltron ended, sticking to his mother’s side now that he could. Lance is happy for him, that he’s doing what he wants to do and has his family beside him, but… it makes his heart ache, every time they see each other and Keith has changed so much, again. It takes him back to the time Keith came back to the Castle of Lions, looking so much bigger than when he had left. It reminds him of the time they’ve lost, all the time they have not spent together, all the time Keith has been away, risking his life and Lance didn’t even know. He’s still shorter than Lance, though, so that hasn’t changed.

He looks down at himself. He’s gained more muscle working at the farm too, both his arms and legs being more defined. His skin is tanner, and he’s gotten his freckles back now that he’s back in constant contact with the sun. His hands are callous, even though he moistourizes even more than he used to. And, the biggest change of all: the marks on his cheekbones, the ones Allura gifted him before she died. They’re still there, a constant reminder that she was real, that she was with them, that she loved him, and he loved her back. 

He raises one hand to touch the mark on his left cheekbone, and is thrown back to the conversation happening around him by Keith’s hand on his shoulder.

“Everything all right?” he asks, his raspy voice whispering in his ear. 

Lance turns to look at him, at his dark eyes, filled with worry and looking so intensely at him, Lance thinks he might be trying to do an X-ray of his brain to find out what he had been thinking about.

“Yeah.” he replies. “Just got a little lost in thought there.” he offers his friend a soft smile, and is given back another, before Keith squeezes his shoulder and turns to look at Pidge, who’s currently talking.

Lance mimics him.

“...and Matt has been going after this new girl working at the Garrison for the few past weeks.” they say, shrugging as they put their glass back down on the table. “But I understand why. She’s really pretty, and not only that, but she’s smart as hell. And she’s… really mysterious. She barely talks, just comes to do her work and leaves when she’s done. I don’t think I’ve heard her voice yet.” They frown, and look at Keith. “But I’ve been meaning to talk to you about her.”

“Me?” Pidge nods.

“Do you know if your mother came alone when she arrived at Earth?” 

Keith blinks twice before he replies. “She’s never mentioned otherwise.”

“Well, this girl. Her name is Nevvie. She’s half Altean, half Galra, but she was born on Earth. Apparently her father was a Blade, and her mother one of Lotor’s refugees. Her father saved her from a suicide mission Lotor had sent her to, and they ended up here somehow. She’s around your age, so I figured it would be sensible to think that Krolia was there to save her mother too.” 

Lance frowns, and he looks at Keith. He has a confused frown too, and his hands have turned into fists. 

“I will… ask her. Do you know her father’s name?”

“No. In fact, technically, I’m not supposed to know all this, but if the Garrison thought they could bring in a translator who speaks Galra and Altean and I’m not going to be curious, they were wrong.”

“She speaks Altean  _ and _ Galra?” Coran asks. Pidge nods again.

“I assume she was raised speaking both languages, along with English since she grew up in Florida. She was brought as a translator, as I said, for those old documents you sent not so long ago, and to make communications with the Blade easier. And obviously, since she’s the daughter of a Blade, they trust her.” 

“So there’s another half breed Blade?” Keith mutters. “Kolivan didn’t say anything.” 

“She’s only been at the Garrison a few months. You’ve probably been out on missions, and him too, so-” 

“My mother didn’t tell me anything either.” 

“Keith.” Lance says, leaning in to make sure Keith sees him. “Your mom and his father probably got split up somehow. She was in Florida, you were in Texas. There was no way the other knew they were alive, or that they even had children. And she was only with you for a few months either way, didn’t she? It’s not like she had time to check. Don’t jump into conclusions until you talk to her.” 

Keith nods, but Lance knows his gears are already in motion. And he understands. Keith went through a hard time when he found out about his Galra heritage, and adjusting into the Blades, and probably, knowing there was someone out there like him, would have helped him ease into everything. 

“Half Galra, half Altean…” Hunk whispers. “Well, we know how that went last time, don’t we?” 

“I don’t think she’s like Lotor.” Pidge rolls their eyes. “First of all, she wasn’t raised by two sociopaths, and she doesn’t even look like he’s interested in the action of it all. She just sits in her office and rolls her eyes at my brother every so often.” 

“Can I- I want to meet her.” Keith says. Pidge frowns at him.

“I mean. Sure, she’s at the Garrison so… just drop by when you want? I don’t know, I’m not the boss of her. I just drag Matt away when she looks uncomfortable.”

“Keith.” Shiro speaks up for the first time, leaning forward to look at his brother. “I advise you to talk to Krolia before anything. She might not have known about her, but she can help you understand what happened.”

“You knew, didn’t you?” Keith barks. Shiro frowns.

“No, Keith. I did not know. And neither did Curtis, because he would have told me, so don’t take it on us. Calm down, please.” 

Keith seethes, standing up. “I’m going for a walk.” he announces. He shoots a glance at Lance, who nods.

“I’ll go with you.” he whispers, standing up too. 

Keith walks out of the room, Lance following his steps, and when they’re out of the castle, Keith stops so abruptly, Lance crashes against his back. 

“I need to- I have to meet her, Lance.” 

“I know, Keith. And you will, but you need to calm down.”

Keith shooks his head. His breaths are short and quick, and his eyes won’t stay still. Lance sees his hands twitch. “She’s… she’s like me. And she grew up knowing. She understands what this is like better than I do and… I can’t let her slip through my fingers. I need to know her. I need to meet her.” 

“Keith, you need to breathe.” Lance says, placing his hands on Keith’s shoulders and making him turn to look at him. He takes a deep breath, urging Keith to do the same, and then lets it out. 

After a few minutes, Keith is breathing normally again. “Okay.” Lance speaks again, placing his hands on either side of Keith’s neck. “Now listen to me. You’re not alone on any of this, and you never have, okay? We were with you when you found out about your heritage, we were with you when you found your mom, we were with you when you found the Blades, and we’ll be with you now when you meet with this girl. I understand your point of view, and the fact that having someone like you would help understand everything about your life a lot more, but we don’t need to rush into this. We’ll talk to your mother, and then we’ll go meet this Nevvie girl, okay?”

Keith frowns. “We?”

Lance nods. “Of course we. I’m going with you. My dad can manage a few more days without me in the farm, okay? You need someone to support you through this, and I will be that person. It’s not like your mother scares me anymore.” he rolls his eyes, making Keith laugh.

“Thanks, Lance.” he says, pulling Lance closer to hug him. 

“It’s nothing, dude. You know I’m glad to help.” 

  
  


Lance can count with the fingers on one hand how many times he has been at a BOM base. 

It’s not that he doesn’t trust them, or thinks they’re sketchy or anything. But the whole intense Galra, ‘prioritize-the-mission-sacrifice-what-you-must’ is just not his kind of workplace. 

They’re on their way to one of them now, just Keith and him on the ship Keith took to New Altea. It’s been two days since Keith found out about the half Galra girl, and he’s been getting more anxious by the minute. Lance has tried to ground him as much as he has been able to, always placing his hand on his shoulder or thigh, reassuring him that everything will be alright. They’re only going to talk to his mother. She’s his mother, not the stranger she used to be long ago. 

Keith is piloting, and he’s been worrying his lower lip for the better part of the last hour. It’s started bleeding, Lance knows, but Keith won’t let it go. He drums his fingers against the wheel, and keeps shooting glances towards him. Lance, on the other hand, is trying to be as relaxed as he can, not because he is – he still doesn’t like being around Krolia, or worse than that,  _ Kolivan _ ; but for Keith. 

He’s leaning back on his seat, his feet propped up in the dashboard, and his hands behind his head, looking out to the stars that surround the ship. He has missed this sight. The universe, so vast yet so close to his hands. The thousands of billions of lives and planets that live so far away from Earth, and yet so approachable for him now. If he still wanted it.

But that Lance who wanted all that – the Lance who wanted to explore every remote spot in the universe – is gone, left when Allura did. He’s had enough adventures and exploration to last a lifetime. All that he needs now is to be home, knowing his family – his blood family and the one he made along the way – is safe.

He looks at Keith. He’s the only one he never knows where, or how he is. The one who makes his heart tug every time he thinks about him, the one who makes him worry the most. The only piece that doesn’t fit on his new puzzle, too stubborn to step away from the remainder of the war, even if their part has been long finished.

“My mom and Kolivan are together.” Keith says, out of a sudden, and Lance chokes on his own saliva, sitting up abruptly. 

“What? Wh- Wait, like, together as in…?”

“Yes. They’re not open about it, but I thought you should know. Because they’ll probably be together when we arrive, so the conversation will be… with them both, yeah. And I know Kolivan and you aren’t the best of friends either, so. Uhm.”

Lance shakes his head. “How long has this been going on?” 

“Around a year? I didn’t find out until a few months ago, though. Like I say, they’re not really open about it. But they sleep in the same room now. So I…” 

“You walked into them getting hot and bothered?” Lance says, chuckling. Keith shoots him a look and shakes his head. 

“No! That’s disgusting, Lance. No, I didn’t.” he groans, and then sighs. “I don’t know how to approach the...  _ subject _ .”

“Don’t worry, Keith. We’ll just… ask them. About the mission that brought Krolia to Earth and about what Kolivan knows about the girl. Just… let’s not throw knives around when we do, okay? Let’s go in with an open mind.”

Keith doesn’t reply, but he nods. Lance nods back and looks out the window again, sighing as he reclines back on his seat. 

“Do you ever miss Black?” Lance asks, looking back at him. Keith frowns, pouting his lips, and nods.

“Yeah. And Red too. No ship will ever compare to any of them.” 

“Yeah, same. And, no disrespect to Red, I loved him a lot. He was a hell of a sentient ship, but… Blue was different, for me.”

“Because of Allura?” Keith asks. Lance nods.

“Yes. She was kind of our thing. We were connected through her. I think she… she was the whole reason Allura stopped treating me like a joke, you know?”

“Allura didn’t treat you like a joke. She never did. She cared about you a lot.” Lance shrugs.

“But she didn’t treat me seriously. Not when it came to me liking her. But after we changed lions and Allura joined Voltron… it was all different. It was like Blue was making sure she knew how much she really meant to me. I don’t know how to explain it, but…” he shakes his head. “And it’s not only that. Blue was my first lion, she was mine and I was hers first. And she was the one who took us… here.” he says, gesturing at the space. “I think my connection to her went deeper than my connection to Red, because of all of that.” 

“I understand. Even though I was with Black, I always felt like something was missing. Like Black hadn’t chosen me because she wanted to, but because I was the better option out of the remaining ones.” 

“Yeah, I felt the same with Red.” he sighs. 

Keith turns to look at him. “Do you think you would go back to piloting, if they ever came back for us?” 

“I wouldn’t think it twice,” he says. “Blue was my girl. She always will be. If she ever came back, I would drop everything.”

“And if you had to pilot one of the others?”

“I would too. Voltron is… Voltron is bigger than us. I’d know, if they came back, that the reason they did would be way more important than whatever I want. So no, I wouldn’t refuse.” 

Keith hums. “What you want is still important, Lance. You know that, right?” 

“I know. But not more than the safety of our universe.” 

Keith doesn’t reply. Lance keeps talking about less meaningful stuff for the rest of the trip – things like what his niblings are up to lately, or how the farm is doing. How he got Kaltenecker to become friends with the other cows and how he’s taken to take and pick up the kids from school. Keith listens with attention, and comments when needed. Lance smiles the whole time. 

He realizes he hasn’t been this happy in a long time. 

  
  


They get to the base around two Earth days later. Keith let Lance pilot the ship a few times, after Lance gave him a talk about how he should sleep more instead of just winging his body’s needs because they are annoying. Lance had missed piloting, but piloting with Keith asleep by his side, his face relaxed except for the small crease between his brows that let Lance know he was dreaming? Well, that was a whole new experience. One Lance would love to repeat, too. 

When they land in the base’s hangar, Keith is quick to climb down the ramp, waving at a few teammates Lance has probably never seen in his life – or just forgot about. 

“My mom is probably in the war room with Kolivan.” he says. “So let’s go there first.”

“Sure you don’t want to rest for a bit? We’ve been traveling for two days, Keith.” Lance advises. Keith shakes his head.

“The earlier we can wrap this up the better.”

“Okay. Let’s do it your way then.” Lance sighs, as he follows him to the room. 

The room is at the end of a very, very long hall. Keith walks before him the whole time, steady steps as he nods his head at some of the Blades they walk past, and Lance struggles to keep up, trying not to crash onto any of the aliens. 

When they reach the door, Keith places his hand on the panel, and it slides open, revealing, like Keith had guessed, both Krolia and Kolivan sitting around a map.

“Keith.” Krolia says first, standing up and walking towards them. She holds Keith between her arms, hugging him and placing her chin on the top of his head. Lance stays behind, switching his weight from one foot to the other, looking around. “I thought you weren’t coming back until the end of the week?” 

“Something came up. We need to talk. The four of us.” he says. 

Kolivan raises his eyebrows. “Is everything all right?”

“I don’t know. You tell me.” Keith steps away from his mother’s embrace, frowning at Kolivan. “What do you know about the half Galra girl working for you and the Garrison?”

Okay, so long the open mindness, then. Lance presses a hand to Keith’s shoulder, squeezing it. 

“What girl?” Krolia frowns, turning to look at Kolivan. “What is he talking about?” 

Kolivan sighs, standing up. “I was not hiding it from either of you. I was just waiting for both of you to come back from your missions.” he looks at Keith, then at his mother. “She is Krued’s daughter, Krolia. He, like you did, ended up starting a life on Earth after you crashed. The Altean you rescued is the mother.” 

“Krued and Ilehr survived the crash?” Krolia asks. Her face shows the hurt, the guilt, the grieve that she’s feeling. After so long, knowing her teammate is alive, and she left him behind. Not only him, but the refugee they took in too. 

“He ended up in Florida.” Lance chimes in. “The girl, she’s around Keith’s age, Pidge said. Her name is Nevvie, and she’s working as a translator at the Garrison. Both for the Blades and the Altean documents Coran sent them.” 

Kolivan nods. “The human is right. They hired her so that she can translate the information we send in. Her father taught her our customs and our language.”

Krolia turns to look at Keith. “Keith. I didn’t know any of this. If I had known Krued… he could have looked out after you and your father. I- I’m so sorry, Keith.” 

Keith seems to relax at that, but he’s still frowning. He doesn’t look mad anymore, though. Mostly, concerned for his mother. He steps in her direction, and presses his hand on her biceps. “It’s okay, mom. It’s… It’s all right. I just… Pidge told us and I thought you guys were keeping her from me and– But it’s okay.” 

“We’ll be meeting her when we go back to Earth.” Lance offers, smiling at Krolia. “If you’d like to come and talk to her. There’s probably… a lot.”  _ Of things you want to know _ , Lance lefts unsaid.  _ Both of you _ .

Krolia looks at him, and Lance’s smile falters. Krolia’s eyes are sharp, her eyebrows are frowned and her lips pursed, the same face she always does when she looks at him, like Lance is doing everything wrong all the time, even if he’s not doing anything at all. 

Then, she turns to her son. “I would like that. If they’re still alive…” Keith nods.

“We’re leaving in three days.” he says, making his mother frown. 

“Three days?” she glances at Lance. “What about him?”

“I know he’s not a Blade. But the ships can’t make so much distance in such a short time. We’ve already come all the way from Altea, mom. He’ll have to stick around.” 

Krolia looks at Kolivan, who shrugs. Lance, on Keith’s side, gulps. “They’ll have to share the room. We’re full.” 

“That’s okay. Won’t be the first time.” Keith nods. Kolivan nods back at him. “We’ll go now. Leave you to… whatever you were doing.” 

Keith nods again, before he turns back and grabs Lance’s wrist, dragging him out of the room. Once the door has closed behind him, he speaks up.

“Well, that could have gone really, really worse. So yay us. Yay happy alien families!” Keith looks back at him, and tugs at his wrist, making Lance almost trip. “Well that wasn’t nice!”

Keith doesn’t reply, just drags him back to the hangar. “Let’s get our things.” he says, walking back inside the ship they had come with. 

They move Keith’s bag and Lance’s suitcase to Keith’s usual room. Like everything in this base, everything is black and purple. There’s a big bed, big enough that Lance and him can fit perfectly in it. The bathroom is on the right side, but it’s smaller than Lance would have liked. And there’s not even a bathtub, just a small shower. And the closet – it’s just a hanger with Keith’s BOM suit.    
  


Lance sighs. “Very homey.”

“It’s not a home.” Keith replies. 

“Where does your mail arrive, then?” Keith raises his eyebrows. 

“All my electronic mail arrives in my communication device. Obviously.” 

Lance shrugs, dragging his suitcase to a corner so it won’t bother them laying around, and drops himself on the bed, looking up at the ceiling. 

“I’m beat. I could sleep for the three days I’m staying here.” he says, placing his hands on his stomach. Keith lays on his stomach, beside him, his face hiding on the pillow. “And I probably should. Otherwise your mother would kill me. Why does she hate me so much?”

“She doesn’t hate you.” Keith says, his voice muffled by the pillow. “She just doesn’t understand you.” 

“Do I talk too fast?” Keith laughs, shaking his head. He turns his head to look at him, his bangs falling on his eyes, and Lance smiles down at him as he stretches his hand toward him to brush the strands away. 

“No. She just thinks you’re… too much. Not in a bad way, she just gets overwhelmed. It’s not even  _ her _ thing, Galra people just aren’t as expressive as you are. We don’t do feelings or things like that. We just… I don’t know.”

“Yeah, but you’re half human. You can do feelings, too. Don’t excuse yourself on your alien heritage.” he says, poking Keith’s cheek with his index finger. 

Keith hums. After a few seconds, he bites down on his lip and asks: “What do you think she looks like?” 

“Who?” 

“Nevvie. The… the half Galra girl. What do you think she looks like?” 

“Oh. Well, I don’t know. I’ve kind of been imagining her like a female version of Lotor?” Lance says. “Don’t get me wrong, it’s just he’s the only other half Galra/half Altean hybrid we’ve met.”

Keith hums again. He presses his head back into the pillow. “I really want to meet her. I don’t know how to explain it, but… it’s like I need to, you know? Like I need to at least know someone else who’s gone through what I’ve gone through. That understands this.” 

“No, I know. I get it. Don’t worry. It’s just three days more.” 

Keith nods. “Three days more…” 

Not long after that, Keith falls asleep. Lance stays by his side, listening to his soft snoring. His mouth is open, his breath going in and out of his body through it. He hasn’t changed, not even taken off his boots; so Lance crawls to the end of the bed and takes them off for him.

Keith stirs, his head moving to the other side when he feels the shoes slipping off his feet. “Lance?” he mutters.

“Yeah, buddy, it’s me. Go back to sleep, I’m just taking off your boots.” 

“Okay. You’re coming back to bed?” 

‘To _ bed’,  _ a small voice in Lance’s head yells, ‘not _ the bed’.  _

“Sure, I just need to use the bathroom first.” 

  
“Okay. Don’t leave me, okay?”

Lance’s heart stops. Keith is half asleep, and he probably didn’t mean anything with that, but it’s been more than enough to make Lance drop the boot between his hands and his brain short-circuit. Keith doesn’t want him to go. Keith wants him to stay there, with him, sleeping beside him. His heart is going faster than it ever has, and Lance doesn’t even know  _ why _ .

“I-I won’t.” he mutters. 

He sees Keith smile and snuggle the pillow closer to his face. “Okay. G’night.” 

“Good night, Keith.” 

Jesus Christ.

**Author's Note:**

> Nevvie came to me as an epiphany and I could simply not create a whole fanfic just to introduce her in the Voltron universe. I couldn't. I can't wait for you guys to meet her. 
> 
> If you like my works and would like to support me, you can [buy me a coffee](https://ko-fi.com/marvelousmers)
> 
> And you can also find me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/redpaladinzuko) or [tumblr](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/firelordkeith)


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